Golf ball driving area including sand trap simulating means



Sept. 9, 1969 R. l. ANDERSON ETAL 3,466,043

GULF BALL DRIVING AREA INCLUDING SAND TRAP SIMULATING MEANS Filed Oct. 19, 1966 fiz/enioni'r ,yzjt a 19 mm {772 M United States Patent O 3,466,048 GOLF BALL DRIVING AREA INCLUDING SAND TRAP SIMULATING MEANS Robert I. Anderson, Springlake, and Donald E. Bayne,

Muskegon, Mich., assignors to Brunswick Corporation,

a corporation of Delaware Filed Oct. 19, 1966, Ser. No. 587,839 Int. Cl. A63b 67/02, 57/00, 69/36 US. Cl. 273-176 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A golf ball driving area having anchored thereto a sand trap simulating mat including a backing from which a plurality of elongated bristles extend upwardly and rearwardly whereby a golf ball may be supported by the bristles and when a golf club is swung thereat in a manner to encounter the bristles prior to contact with the ball, the bristles exert a downward force on the golf club and are interposed between the club and the ball to act as an energy transfer medium to add impetus to the ball without actual ball-club contact.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Currently, in the game of golf, and particularly in conjunction with practice devices for golf or indoor golf games, mats are used to simulate the lie on various portions of a golf course. In fact, on some rather heavily traveled public golf courses, suitable mats have been used in place of grass in tee areas. Such mats provide the advantage of fairly realistically simulating the lie on a portion of a golf course and do not require the degree of maintenance required in maintaining an actual golf course wherein all lies are on the turf.

Furthermore, where such mats are used in conjunction with indoor golf games, they provide the additional advantage of providing a realistic simulation without causing the attendant janitorial problem that would be caused if turf were used.

Currently existing lie simulating mats are used to simulate the. lie condition of a fairway on a golf course. As far as is known, no means have been provided to simulate the lie in a sand trap on a golf course. The failure of the prior art to provide a sand trap simulating mat requires that actual sand be used for a stand trap shot. This factor, in the case of outdoor driving ranges, requires that the proprietor, if he is to enable his clientele to practice trap shots, provide an actual sand trap and maintain it, as by raking and refilling, with a great deal of expended effort, and only one or two golfers may use the trap at any given time.

In the case of indoor golf games, the use of actual sand is virtually impossible in that it causes an extreme cleanup problem and may foul up data acquisition equipment commonly used in such indoor golf games. As a result, the inability to provide for trap shots inindoor games decreases the realism thereof, and thus, their attractive ness to a golfer. i

In the case of outdoor golf courses, the use of a simulating sand trap provided by a mat would eliminate the maintenance problems associated with conventional sand traps.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The principal object of the invention is to provide a simulated sand trap.

More specifically, it is an object to provide a simulated sand trap that is maintenance free.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a sand trap simulating means comprising a backing memher mounting a plurality of elongated resilient elements that project upwardly and rearwardly of the backing member at an acute angle.

A still further object is the provision of a sand trap simulating that set forth in the preceding paragraph wherein the acute angle is in the approximate range of 3()-60.

Yet another object is the provision of a mat such as that set forth in the preceding paragraph wherein the resilient elements are formed from a non-metallic, plas tic material and project upwardly and toward the rear side of the backing member at an angle of approximately 45.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a mat for simulating a sand trap comprised of a plurality of elongated resilient elements and means for mounting the elements at an acute angle to slope away from the intended line of flight of a golf ball hit from the mat, the acute angle being chosen as a function of the resiliency of the elements so as to cause a moving golf club encountering the elements to be forced downwardly so that some of the elements are interposed between the club and the ball to dissipate most of the force of the moving club while transmitting some of the force thereof to the ball.

Another object is the provision of a mat such as that set forth in the preceding paragraph wherein the elements are formed of bristles having a length of about six inches.

A further object is the provision of a mat such as that set forth above wherein the elements are formed from a material that is sufficiently resilient to prevent tangling and breaking after repeated use, the elements further being sufficiently thick to prevent breaking after repeated use.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the use in one environment of a sand trap simulating means made ac cording to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the exemplary embodiment of the sand trap simulating means; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken approximately along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An exemplary embodiment of a sand trap simulating device made according to the invention is illustrated in the environment of a tee area, generally designated 10, shown in FIG. 1. Specifically, the sand trap simulating means comprises a mat 12 having a front side 14 and a rear side 16 and secured in the tee area such that the front side 14 faces the intended direction of flight of a shot struck from the tee area 10 as represented by an arrow 18.

i A ball 20 rests on the mat 12 so that it may be hit by a golfer 22 swinging a golf club 24 to provide impetus to the ball 20 in the general direction of the arrow 18.

Turning now to FIG. 2, the specific nature of the construction of the mat 12 will be described. The mat 12 is comprised of a wooden base 26 which may have a thickness of about 1", a length of about 31", and a width of about 12". Suitable bores 28 are provided in the wooden base 26 to receive securing means such as screws 30 which may be used to secure the wooden base to the material comprising the tee area It). If desired, the bores 28 and the securing means 30 may be omitted and the base 26 secured in a tee area by means of nesting the base 26 in a relatively shallow depression having dimensions that substantially correspond to the dimensions of the base 26.

A plurality of tufts 32 each comprised of a plurality of bristles 34 are mounted in the base 26 at a rearwardly opening acute angle with respect to the plane of the latter. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the tufts 32 are angled toward the rear side 16 of the mat 12 at an angle of about forty-five degrees plus or minus three degrees with respect to the plane of the base 26. Each tuft 32 is comprised of seventy-eight bristles 34 and the length of each tuft 32 is approximately six inches from its exposed end to the point of entry into the base 26. The bristles 34 comprising each tuft 32 are preferably formed of nylon, are circular in cross section and have a diameter of about 0.022 inch. If desired, the nylon material may be dyed a sand color for the purpose of realism.

Materials other than nylon may be used. Preferably, however, non-metallic materials such as plastics will be used so that the bristles will not scratch or otherwise mar a club head.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the manner in which the tufts 32 are mounted will be described. The base 26 includes a plurality of bores 36 that are drilled in the base 26 at a rearward angle of about forty-five degrees. The tufts 32 are then placed within the bores 36 and, if necessary, secured therein by means of a suitable adhesive.

In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, the bores 36 are located on a plurality of straight lines at one-half inch increments. Each of the straight lines is spaced from the adjacent straight lines by a distance of about one-half inch and alternate straight lines have their respective bores 36 staggered at one-quarter inch increments.

The manner in which an explosion shot from an actual sand trap is performed customarily involves the swinging of the club in a downward arc to impact the sand a few inches behind the position of the ball in the sand. The angle between a club face and the sole of the club together with the fact that the club is being moved in a downward are at the time it initially contacts the sand will cause the leading edge of the club to dig into the sand at the point of contact therewith. The force applied to the moving club by the sand will tend to force the club downwardly, i.e., increase the radius of the arc in which the club head is swung, while the force of the club applied to the sand will be partially transmitted by the latter to the ball. Because of the particulate nature of the sand, the grains thereof will separate and a good deal of the force applied to the sand by the club will be dissipated and not transmitted to the ball. Thus, a ball will leave the sand at a significantly lower velocity than would be the case if it were contacted directly by the club, and as a result, the distance the shot travels will be decreased significantly.

Returning now to FIG. 2, the manner in which a mat 12 made according to the invention simulates an explosion shot from a sand trap will be described. The ball 20 is shown to be resting on the bristles 34 as the golf club 24 is swung in the direction of an arrow 38 toward the ball. Assuming that a golfer is swinging the club 24 in a manner to strike the mat 12 before striking the ball 20 as is proper when making an explosion shot from a sand trap, it will be apparent that the leading edge 40 of the club 24 will strike the bristles during the downward arc of the club 24 and the inherent resiliency of the bristles 34 will exert a force on the club 24 that will tend to drive the club 24 downwardly, i.e. increase the radius of the arc in which it is being swung. Simultaneously, the force of the club 24 applied to the bristles 34 will cause them to move upwardly and to the right as viewed in FIG. 2 to act against the ball 20. The bristles 34 will also separate thereby dissipating a good deal of the force before it is applied to the ball. Thus, if the golfer has caused the club 24 to contact the upper surface of the mat 12 substantially before the club contacts the ball 20, it will be apparent that a significant number of the bristles 34 will be interposed between the face 42 of the club 24 and the ball 20 such that force applied to the ball 20 from the club 24 will be solely by transfer through the bristles 34.

Because of the force dissipation, the ball 20 will be hit into the air at a significantly slower velocity than would be the case if it were contacted directly by the club 24. Those skilled in the art will recognize that this action is exactly that provided by the sand in a sand trap.

When a golfer does not desire to perform an explosion shot from a sand trap, he will generally try to pick the ball off of the surface of the sand. Generally, in order to insure that the full force of the moving club is applied to the ball, the golfer will attempt to hit the ball while the club is moving in a downward are or is at the bottom of its are at a time just before the club encounters the sand.

In the event the golfers timing is not quite correct, he may either skull the ball or strike the sand just before the club head hits the ball. In the first case, the golfer will not hit the ball up into the air to the desired extent and the ball will generally either fly too far or not far enough depending upon the terrain surrounding the trap. In the latter case, the ball will not fly the intended distance.

A mat 12 made according to the teachings of the invention also provides this action. Because of the relatively long length of the bristles 34, the ball 20 will not sit precisely on top of the bristles, but rather, will form a slight depression in the bristles such as is illustrated in FIG. 2. Those skilled in the art will recognize that such a life is normal in an actual sand trap. As a result, the golfer if he attempts to pick the ball off of the mat 12 must perform the shot in exactly the same manner as he would do if he were in an actual sand trap and if his timing is off, the same results, namely either the skulling of the shot or the striking of the bristles before the hitting of the ball with the resulting decreased distance of the shot, will occur.

It should be noted that the aforementioned values for bristle angle, bristle diameter, bristle density, and bristle length are just one set of parameters that may be used to successfully fabricate a sand trap simulating means according to the invention. Such parameters can be varied significantly if one or more of the other para-meters are changed. For example, if a different material is used or if the bristle diameter is increased so that each bristle is stiffer than a bristle made according to the aforementioned parameters, the rearward .angle of the bristles with respect to the base may have to be increased to maintain a realistic simulation in that the increased resistance of such modified bristles may tend to drag the club 24 too deep into the mat and require the golfer to swing the club at a higher velocity than would be the case in a sand trap.

With almost any set of parameters, it is desirable to maintain the bristles 34 at a rearward angle in the range from approximately 30 to approximately 60 to provide an acceptable simulation.

When the sand trap mat is made according to the invention using parameters other than those specifically enumerated above in conjunction with the description of the exemplary embodiment, it is also desirable to consider two additional factors of a practical nature when selecting the parameters. Specifically, when relatively thin bristles are used, repeated use of the mat may cause such bristles to break relatively easily thereby decreasing the useful life of the mat. The use of relatively stiff bristles may cause the same problem. When relatively limp bristles are used, the adjacent bristles in the mat may become tangled after a few shots and will not separate properly to provide the desired force dissipating action thereby reducing the realism of the simulation.

Having described specific embodiments of our invention for exemplification purposes, we do not wish to be limited to the details set forth, but rather, to have our invention construed in accordance with the following claims.

We claim:

1. Means for simulating an explosion shot from a sand trap consisting essentially a horizontal support means having fixed thereto and extending upwardly therefor m elongated bristle-like resilient elements substantially all of which are inclined in substantially the same direction at substantially the same acute angle relative to said support means, the number of said resilient elements and the spacing of said resilient elements relative to each other being such that the upper ends of said resilient elements define an upper mat surface of substantial area on which a golf ball may be positioned, a golf ball on said surface, the material, number, length, degree of inclinatioh and spacing of said resilient elements relative to each other further being such as to force downwardly the head of a golf club striking and entering the mats upper surface during the execution with said golf club of a conventional golf club swing in which said club head is swung downwardly against the mats upper surface from the direction in which said resilient elements are inclined so that the forward impact force of said club head may be transmitted to the golf ball on said surface by the bristle-like resilient elements interposed between the golf ball and the point of entry of the club head into said upper surface.

2. In an area from which golf balls are intended to be driven in a given forward direction, the combination comprising (a) means for simulating an explosion shot from a sand trap and consisting essentially of support means having fixed thereto and extending away therefrom elongated bristle-like resilient elements substantially all of which are inclined in substantially the same rearward direction relative to said forward direction and at substantially the same acute angle relative to said support means, the number of said resilient elements and the spacing of said resilient elements relative to each other being such that the ends of said resilient elements distant from said support means define a mat surface of substantial area on which a golf ball may be positioned, the rneterial, number, length, degree of inclination and spacing of said resilient elements relative to each other further being such as to force downwardly the head of a golf club striking and entering the mats ball supporting surface during the execution with said golf club of a conventional golf club swing in which said club head is swung downwardly against the mats ball supporting surface from the rearward direction in which said resilient elements are inclined so that the forward impact force of said club head may be transmitted to a golf ball, if one is positioned on the mats ball supporting surface, forwardly of the point of entry of said club head into said ball supporting surface; and (b) means anchoring said support means in said area. 3. The area of claim 2 wherein said acute angle is in the range from about to about 60.

4. The area of claim 3 wherein said acute angle is about 45.

5. The area of claim 2 wherein the length of said elements is on the order of six inches.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,391,783 9/1921 McDermott et al 15-159 2,384,723 9/ 1945 Brodzik et al. 273- 3,0! 8,109 1/1962 Starck 273-186 GEORGE J. MARLO, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

